|
Be more of an insider. Get the Washington Examiner Magazine, Digital Edition now. |
|
SIGN UP! If you’d like to continue receiving Washington Examiner’s Daily on Energy newsletter, SUBSCRIBE HERE: http://newsletters.washingtonexaminer.com/newsletter/daily-on-energy/ FERC CHAIRMAN HINTS AT ACTION TO COMPENSATE GRID RESILIENCE: The chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said Wednesday night that the independent commission likely will take some kind of action to better value the resilience that certain power plants provide to the electric grid based on what grid operators report this week. The nation’s federally overseen grid operators, which run about 70 percent of the nation’s power supply, will report to FERC Friday on the state of the nation’s grid resilience, or its ability to bounce back from a major disruption such as this year’s bomb cyclone in the Northeast. “Only hypothetically is nothing an option. I would be very surprised if we go through all that process and take no action,” Kevin McIntyre, a Republican, told reporters during an appearance at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston.
‘Tricky and critical’: McIntyre suggested FERC would like to better value the resilience attributes that power plants provide to the grid, based on the energy source they use.
“The compensation side is tricky and critical,” McIntyre said. “If there are power plants — big, small or otherwise — that are making valid, resilience-focused contributions to our grid, essentially helping to keep the lights on in a way that shores up resilience, but are not being compensated for those attributes that they are providing to the grid, that is automatically of concern to FERC.” GREENS HOPE GRID OPERATORS WON’T CALL FOR RESURRECTION OF PERRY PLAN: Environmentalists are anxiously awaiting what the grid operators tell FERC.
No evidence to support FERC coal ‘mandate:’ “Whatever they do tell FERC, it is critical to keep in mind that there is no evidence of a resilience crisis, let alone one requiring a new FERC mandate,” the Natural Resources Defense Council’s John Moore said Thursday. “That’s in part because grid operators already incorporate resilience into many of their reliability-focused responsibilities.”
FERC said ‘no’ to Perry’s plan: Moore praised FERC for rejecting Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s “scheme to bail out financially troubled coal and nuclear power plants” by mandating that they be paid for being able to generate electricity when power supplies are disrupted or strained. In rejecting Perry’s plan, the commission asked the grid operators to report on the grid’s reliability and resilience. Making sure Perry doesn’t get a second chance: FERC “rightly rejected” Perry’s proposal for several reasons, Moore said, “including that there was a woeful lack of evidence to support the claim that coal and nuclear plants are necessary to support resilience.” The Energy Department also “failed to define resilience or differentiate from existing efforts to ensure reliability, and that the proposed bailout arbitrarily supported coal and nuclear plants over other technologies.” He said the environmental group is urging the operators not to support any measure that would look to resurrect the Perry plan. Instead, they should support FERC’s recent actions to bolster battery storage on the grid, which will help consumers while ensuring a more resilient grid. Welcome to Daily on Energy, compiled by Washington Examiner Energy and Environment Writers John Siciliano (@JohnDSiciliano) and Josh Siegel (@SiegelScribe). Email [email protected] for tips, suggestions, calendar items and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. RYAN VOWS TO NOT RAISE GAS TAX: House Speaker Paul Ryan said Wednesday night that the Republican-led Congress won’t raise the federal gas tax to pay for President Trump’s infrastructure plan, seemingly putting the idea to rest. “Well, we’re not going to raise gas taxes, so I don’t foresee that as a problem,” the Wisconsin Republican said during a telephone town hall with Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips. “We’re just not going to do that here. There are some people who are talking about that, but the last thing we want to do is pass historic tax relief in December and then undo that, so we are not going to raise gas taxes.”
GOP split: Americans for Prosperity, a conservative political group aligned with oil men Charles and David Koch, has been lobbying Congress to oppose a gas tax increase. The Republican-aligned Chamber of Commerce, meanwhile, has endorsed a hike.
The tax, which has not been increased in 25 years, is 18.4 cents for gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel. WHEN MIDNIGHT STRIKES, ZINKE ONE STEP CLOSER TO OFFSHORE DRILLING PLAN: Time is up for those who want to comment on the environmental review for the Interior Department’s five-year offshore drilling plan.
Half a million and counting: The deadline to submit comments on the environmental impact statement for the controversial plan is up at 11:59 p.m. March 9. As of Thursday, regulations.gov said the proposed environmental review had already received well over 500,000 comments.
Many of the comments are from individuals, as opposed to groups, which typically base their opposition or support on legal precedent, or studies, that demonstrate the cost or benefit of moving forward with a proposal. Nevertheless, a comment reviewed by John appears to sum up many of the controversial points that the drilling plan has raised after Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke announced it in January. “The leasing of our waters is unneeded and inappropriate at this time,” according to a member of the Sierra Club’s Shasta Group. “The coastline of the entire U.S. is pristine and home to not only our oceans but also a very huge visitor industry.” Point one: Tourism: The plan’s effect on tourism has been raised in recent months, especially by Florida’s leaders. That will be one major point driving the opposition to the five-year lease plan. Point two: fault lines: The Sierra Club member is also raising what appears to be the fear of seismic activity that drilling offshore on the West Coast could trigger. “The western U.S. has major fault lines which cannot be designed against to prevent oil spills,” the comment continued. “I grew up in Eureka, Calif., and enjoyed the coast for all of northern California and southern Oregon. This area has a huge tourist industry which would be devastated if there were an oil spill.” Point three: not worth the risk: “There is no public benefit large enough to justify the risk of a single oil spill,” the writer added. Point four: renewables: Instead, he suggested that the offshore plant be modified to support tidal, offshore wind and wave energy. “Please utilize more studies for installing clean energy technology using wind and water action. I am a member of the Sierra Club and do not want any oil leases off our coastlines.” PERRY SUPPORTS STRATEGIC STEEL TARIFFS: Perry wants tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to be “strategic,” rather than a blanket policy that targets all countries’ imports. “I think strategically deploying tariffs, and messaging and regulations, is the key here,” Perry told reporters Wednesday at the energy conference CERAWeek in Houston.
Industry criticizes: His comments came amid ongoing criticism by the oil and natural gas industry that tariffs are the wrong direction for the U.S. energy sector, especially for oil and natural gas pipeline development.
Unfair trade practices: The president “does know there are countries out there who are in fact impacting the market by their engagement of subsidies [and] what some would refer to as unfair trade practices,” Perry told reporters at the five-day energy conference. Trump understands impact: He added that Trump is aware of the effects the tariffs would have on the energy sector and wants to keep the energy sector economically viable in any decision he makes.
APPEALS COURT ALLOWS KIDS’ CLIMATE CHANGE LAWSUIT TO PROCEED: A federal appeals court on Wednesday said a climate change lawsuit brought by children against the U.S. government can continue in a lower court, dealing a blow to the Trump administration, which sought to shut the case down.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the Trump administration had not shown enough evidence to support ending the case involving 21 children who say government policy has exacerbated global warming and climate change.
Future at stake: Our Children’s Trust, representing the children, says the government, by propping up fossil fuels, has failed to address climate change on behalf of future generations, endangering their health and prosperity. The group filed the lawsuit in 2015 in Oregon federal court during the Obama administration.
Power play: Both the Trump and Obama administrations argue the case threatens the separation of powers, contending that courts cannot rule on broad and speculative issues such as the impact of government policy on climate change. What now: The lower federal court in Oregon now can continue considering the case on its merits. ZINKE’S PLAN TO USE ENERGY FUNDS FOR PARK REPAIRS GETS BIPARTISAN SUPPORT IN CONGRESS: Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke partnered Wednesday with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to create a fund to pay for the billions of dollars of repairs and maintenance needed in national parks and wildlife refuges. The fund, which would hold up to $18 billion, would be paid for by new leases for energy development on onshore and offshore federal lands. It also would finance schools under the Bureau of Indian Education.
The backers: Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and Angus King, I-Maine, sponsored legislation creating the fund on the Senate side. Additional co-sponsors include Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., Steve Daines, R-Mont., Cory Gardner, R-Colo., and Thom Tillis, R-N.C.Reps. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, and Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., announced a companion bill in the House.
Fix it: The Interior Department has a $16 billion maintenance backlog, the agency says. Of that amount, the National Park Service has the largest share, $11.6 billion in 2017. What about that park fee hike? Interior’s proposal is already more popular than other ideas the agency has offered to repair national parks. Last year, the National Park Service proposed to more than double visitor fees for 17 popular national parks to pay for the repairs and upkeep. The plan has been widely panned. Not dead yet: A National Park Service official told Josh that the agency is reviewing public comments about the fee hikes and expects to “complete that process in the coming weeks.” TOP GOP SENATOR URGES FULL FUNDING OF LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAM: Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told Josh he opposes Zinke’s plan for creating the fund for the parks. Instead, he says Congress should “fully fund” the threatened Land and Water Conservation Fund, a decades-old program that Trump aims to severely weaken.
Drained fund: The Land and Water Conservation Fund gets its money from offshore oil and gas leases and pays for public lands projects. Congress has routinely diverted money from the fund to pay for unrelated expenses. Trump’s 2019 budget proposes reducing the fund by about 90 percent.
Burr says restoring that funding should be prioritized over deferred maintenance. ‘Proven results’: “There is certainly no shortage of national parks, national wildlife refuges, and other public lands that have deferred maintenance backlogs,” Burr said. “However, the Land and Water Conservation Fund is a program with proven results. From providing public land access to sportsmen and women and protecting vulnerable watersheds for communities, it has proven its worth time and again. We need to fully fund and permanently reauthorize the LWCF before we start addressing deferred maintenance.” FOREST SERVICE CHIEF RESIGNS AMID SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS: Tony Tooke, chief of the U.S. Forest Service, resigned from his post effective Wednesday as he faced allegations of sexual misconduct and an investigation spearheaded by the Agriculture Department.
The allegations: A “PBS NewsHour” investigation this month exposed a culture of sexual harassment and assault at the agency, and those individuals who reported incidents faced retribution. The investigation also found that Tooke faced accusations of sexual misconduct and engaged in relationships with subordinates prior to leading the agency.
Cooperating with probe: In his resignation letter, Tooke recognized that the PBS report “prompted an [Agriculture Department] investigation, which I requested and fully support, and with which I have cooperated.” ENERGY AND COMMERCE DEMOCRATS WANT PRUITT FOR BUDGET HEARING: Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., urged the panel’s Republican leaders Thursday to call Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt to testify about his 2019 budget proposal. The Democrats say they want to question Pruitt about “dramatic” cuts to clean air programs, chemical safety research, and more.
Following routine: “Budget hearings have routinely been held by this subcommittee, and provide an essential opportunity to question EPA leaders about the agency’s priorities and plans,” Pallone and Tonko wrote in a letter to committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., and Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill. “No such hearing was held last year, and no such hearing has yet been scheduled for this year. This lack of accountability, while entirely consistent for Administrator Pruitt, is unacceptable.”
Forcing his hand: Pallone and Tonko say the Republicans should “compel” Pruitt to testify if he refuses. Pruitt last appeared before the committee in December for an oversight hearing. ZINKE TO TESTIFY BEFORE HOUSE NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE NEXT WEEK: Zinke, meanwhile, will testify before the House Natural Resources Committee on March 15, the panel announced Thursday. Katie Schoettler, a committee spokeswoman, told Josh that Zinke will talk about the fiscal 2019 Interior Department budget proposal. RUNDOWN Bloomberg Netanyahu warns U.S. lawmakers about Saudi nuclear power deal Wall Street Journal GM CEO pushes for renewed tax breaks on electric vehicles Reuters China plans to create energy ministry in government shakeup New York Times Forests protect the climate. A future with more storms would mean trouble Washington Post Trump official said scientists went ‘outside their wheelhouse’ by writing climate change ‘dramatically’ shrunk Montana glaciers New York Times A farming town divided: Do we want a nuclear site that brings jobs? Wall Street Journal Mining giants face blow from world’s no. 1 cobalt producer |
CalendarTHURSDAY, MARCH 8 9 a.m., 1919 Connecticut Ave. NW. Nmble Inc. holds its 2018 Nuclear Power Full Life-Cycle Global Summit. 10:35 a.m., Houston. Federal Energy Regulatory Commissioner Robert Powelson addresses CERAWeek. FRIDAY, MARCH 9 9 a.m., 3401 Massachusetts Ave. NW. The Atlantic Council holds a discussion on “Trends in the Norwegian Oil and Gas Sector.” 9:35 a.m., Houston. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairwoman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, discuss the road ahead in Washington at CERAWeek. 10 a.m., 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW. The Center for Strategic and International Studies holds a book discussion on “The Logic of American Nuclear Strategy.” Noon, 14th and F streets NW. The CO2 Coalition holds a news conference on “Does the World Need Climate Insurance?” Noon, 2168 Rayburn House Office Building. The Environmental and Energy Study Institute holds a briefing on the “2018 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook.” eesi.org/briefings/view/030918bcse WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14 All day, Washington Marriott at Metro Center. American Council on Renewable Energy holds its annual Renewable Energy Policy Forum. All day, 555 Pennsylvania Ave.. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute holds its Energy Summit: A World in Transition. THURSDAY, MARCH 15 12:30 p.m., 1619 Massachusetts Ave. NW. The School for Advanced International Studies holds the Energy in China conference. eventbrite.com/e/energy-in-china-tickets-43900939893?aff=es2 |
